The Canadians

Canada’s Population

32 million

Unlike the US, some Canadians feel more closely attached to their own region than to Canada as a whole because –

1. The country’s vast distances2. The different cultures

The Inuit are the Indigenous (native) people of Canada

The Vikings…..

……were the first Europeans to arrive in Canada in 1,000 AD, but they didn’t settle there.

1500’s and 1600’s

In the 1500’s and 1600’s, both Britain and France claimed areas of Canada. French explorers, settlers, and missionaries founded several cities. The most important were Quebec and Montreal.

For almost 230 years, France ruled the area around the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes. This region was called New France.

St. Lawrence River The Great Lakes

During the 1600’s and 1700’s, England and France fought each other for land. One of those pieces of land was Canada. The war for Canada was called The Seven Years war. Britain won and

by 1763, the British gained control of Canada.

Tragically, European warfare and diseases were destroying the Native American cultures of Canada.

For about 100 years, great Britain held Canada s a colony. A colony is an overseas piece of land where another country has control of

it.

COLONY

While Canada was ruled by Great Britain, English and French areas were kept separate. Each region has its own small government. In 1876, the different colonies of Canada

became one nation known as the Dominion of Canada. As a dominion Britain allowed Canada to have its own government. Canada had its own government to run local affairs.

The new Canadian government promised continued protection for the French

language and culture in Quebec. French speakers claimed they were treated

unfairly because of their heritage.

During the 1900’s, the Canadians fought side by side with the British and Americans in the two World Wars.

Canada’s loyal support in these conflicts gradually led to Canada’s full independence. In 1982, Canada won the right to change their constitution, which finally made Canada completely independent from Britain. This happened very peacefully.

Canada’s Government

The Canadians have a British style parliamentary democracy. In this type of government, voters elect parliament. The parliament then chooses the Prime

Minister.

Canada is a bilingual. A bilingual country has two official languages. The British

and French languages and cultures exist together in Canada.

Most of the French speaking people live in Quebec. For many years, the people of Quebec want to become independent to

keep their culture protected in a largely English speaking country.

As you already have learned, the first people of Canada were the Inuit and other Natives. In 1999 the new territory of Nunavut was created for the Inuit. The Inuit now control the government and mineral rights of this new territory.

When issues involve other nations, however, the national government of Canada still makes the decisions.

More than 60 percent of the Inuit's are under the age of 25.

• Finding jobs to take care of the young population is difficult because there is not much industry in this region. The government is the largest employer, but there are not enough jobs. People often must hunt and fish to make sure they have enough food and warm clothes to stay alive. Nunavut must develop an economy that will grow along with its population so that its citizens will not have to depend on government welfare.